Perfect Fit
by Suzie's Q
Summary: Lily and James have been on the Quidditch team together for years, and yet he's just begun to see her differently.


I don't own this either.

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**Perfect Fit**  
Summary: Lily and James have been on the Quidditch team together for years, and yet he's just begun to see her differently.  
Pairing: J/L  
Word Count: 2,024  
Rating: K+

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"_James!" _

James jerks around and narrowly dodges a Bludger that had been aiming for his head, taking a second to steady himself on his wobbling broom. He doesn't feel any steady, but he shoots off again, trying to keep his eye on the Quaffle.

But it doesn't work.

His eyes follow her, easily distinguishable by the mess of deep red hair that she pins back in a tight ponytail when she's playing Quidditch. At first, it was just following her direction as she sped by him, priding himself on having such good players on his team. And then he started to find himself staring at her, sometimes while he was flying at a low speed, other times while he hung stationary in the air.

Now his eyes immediately seek her out, not only on the pitch, but any time he enters a room. But _especially _during Quidditch practice.

He doesn't understand. She's been on the team as long as he has - why is he only noticing these things _now? _How could he ever have missed that brilliant smile, or the tight feeling in his chest any time she sends that smile his way?

As teammates, they have plenty contact. And lately, that has been nothing short of torture for James. He's quite used to poking fun at one another, a witty remark here, a sardonic comment there, a little jab at the other's skills whenever it fit in.

But now he lies awake at night, replaying those conversations in his head. Thinking about the smirk it brings to her face when she comes up with a good enough comeback. The little twinkle it brings to her eyes.

He also thinks about the way, when she pats his shoulder and nudges his elbow with her own, his whole body seems to jolt as if she has just woken it up, and he's just realized how amazing she is. It feels like she's setting fire to him, but at the same time it's the best feeling in the world.

Today is no different. Instead of having his eye on the Quaffle, or even on the rest of his team to evaluate their performance, his eyes are transfixed on her. Everything he knows or thinks about her runs through is head, replacing practical things like tactics or moves or improvements the team needs to make.

In the last few months, Lily Evans has filled his head completely, and now when he tries to focus on something else, all he gets is a dull buzz. Normally this would irritate him, but strangely, he doesn't mind having his head so delightfully filled by Lily.

Now when he gives his speeches or pep-talks - and he always does, he's famous for them - his heart starts to thud because he can feel her eyes on him. He deliberately looks anywhere but at her, because something will betray him, whether it be his expression, his body language, or even the rush of blood that will pool in his cheeks the moment he catches her eye.

And it's strange, because she's a Chaser and the three of them have been on the team for years, so well that they can communicate wordlessly on the pitch. They know exactly what moves they need to perform, together, without it being said. They have learned to work as an effortless machine, and the fit together so perfectly.

He's used to grins, private jokes, tiny nods of approval. He can't help but worry if she's noticed this distance.

For at least the millionth time in the last month alone, he tries to shake his head free from Lily Evans for at least _five minutes, _and shoots after the Quaffle. She passes it to him, and he fumbles, dropping it to the ground.

The other Chasers speed on ahead to do a lap while he dives to retrieve it. He hears the sound of a bat colliding with a Bludger, then he hears his Keeper scream. Then he sees a figure on a broom, reeling in zigzags towards the ground.

His broom seems to be more in tune with his mind than his body is, because it's already heading for that direction before he's ordered his body to do so.

With the help of the Beater who _hadn't _hit her in the head, they manage to catch her and lower her safely to the ground. James can feel his heart thudding in his chest, he can feel the colour drain from his face when he sees her. There's a dash of blood - alright, more than a dash, a lot - but she's conscious at least, groggily clutching at her head and grimacing with the pain.

He crouches beside her, feeling tingles start to shoot through him at the close proximity.

He pushes those kind of thoughts back because her eyes are starting to slip out of focus, and she needs him to be Captain and take care of her, instead of pondering all his mingled romantic feelings growing for her. He can do that later.

He tilts her head up to meet her eyes, and she blinks back at him. "Okay. Let's take you to the hospital wing. I guess we'll call it a day," he says to the rest of the team.

Once they've got Lily on her feet, still a little dizzy obviously, but able to stand on her own, they make for the hospital wing, after James has fended off Marcus, the Beater, who is spluttering past the point of coherence to apologize. He likes Marcus a lot, and he knows he's a nice bloke, but at this moment, he would like nothing more than to sink his fist into Marcus' jaw.

As the castle comes into view, it strikes James that this is the first time he's been alone with Lily for a very long time. He swallows, supporting her weight as they walk. His mouth is dry. He can feel his pulse beating in his ears. Every inch of his body is hyper alert.

Lily is mumbling, only semi-cognizant of what's happening. James only catches a few odd phrases. "James Potter is ... arms... must be dreaming... my head hurts... hands..."

They reach the hospital wing, by which time is James is filled from the top of his head to the tip of his toes with affection. He lets Madam Pomfrey take charge, and reluctantly goes back to the common room so he can get a shower and change.

He lies awake at night, replaying Lily's garbled mumbling in his head over and over again, trying to make sense out of it. She touched him. She _held onto him, _while he supported her on their way. She squeezed his hand when he let her go.

He gets about three hours sleep. The next day is a Saturday, and James disregards homework in favour of going to the hospital wing, as soon as his friends deem it's an appropriate hour (seven o' clock was apparently not an appropriate hour).

Lily is sitting up in her bed, eating an early lunch, fully alert. She beams at James when he walks in, and perches himself at the end of her bed.

"How are you feeling?"

"Much better," she replies cheerfully. "How is Marcus? Still beating himself up over it."

James shrugs. "I suppose so. He should, that was a nasty hit. I heard it halfway across the field."

Lily grimaces. "I bet I looked terrible."

James frowns, and slowly says, "No...", unsure of why that's important anyway. She always looks great. "You looked tough. Like a proper professional."

Lily just grins, resting her back against her pillows. "Did you take me up here?" James nods. "I thought so. I couldn't tell if I was dreaming or not. My hero," she adds then, winking at him.

He smiles weakly. "Yeah, right," he snorts.

Her smile becomes thoughtful. "I had a dream about you, you know," she tells him, and when James replies, he has to fight to keep his tone sounding... well, human.

"Oh, really?"

She nods, slowly. "Yeah. I think I was getting mixed up with reality and dreams. You brought me up here, and then I went to lie down, and then I woke up to find you weeping over my lifeless body."

James laughs, his cheeks going bright red. "You should write romance novels."

She shrugs, blinking at him curiously. "So that _didn't happen?" _James shakes his head, and Lily sags her shoulders in exaggerated disappointment.

"Well. Way to ruin a girl's daydreams."

At that, James clears his throat, suddenly feeling his collar tight around his neck. "Sorry about that."

"Everything okay, James?" she prods. A shiver ripples over his skin at the sound of his name on her lips. "You've been a bit odd the past couple of weeks. Well, -"

"- More odd than normal," he beats her to the punch, and is rewarded with a playful scowl. She reaches over to punch his shoulder lightly.

"You great arse."

"My great arse?" he says, grinning broadly now. "Why, thank you, Evans, I don't like to brag but..."

"Stop!" she laughs, narrowing her eyes at him. James notices that she can't stop smiling. He also notices that he can't breathe.

"So, is there - I haven't done anything wrong?" she asks him, her eyebrows knitting together.

"No, Lily, of - of _course _not," his words tumble over each other in his haste to get them out. "It's me, really, I know I've been acting a bit odd with you around, I can't really ... help it..."

He trails off once he catches sight of her expression, which has gone from confused and worried, to surprised. An awkward, deafening silence descends between the two of them, and James feels his face getting steadily hotter until he's surely the colour of a tomato, until Lily clears her throat to speak.

"Listen, James... Pomfrey's letting me out once I finish my lunch. Do you want to go for a walk with me?" Her smile is a little less vivacious than usual, perhaps a little timid.

He nods, and they continue talking - normally, thank Merlin - until Lily finishes up. He waits while she dresses and Madam Pomfrey checks her over one last time.

It's a beautiful day, and Lily suggests they go for a walk down by the lake.

"You know," she begins conversationally as they walk. "It's sort of my fault, what happened with the speeding Bludger." He raises his eyebrows, watching her as they head for the grounds. She nods, wrinkling her nose up. "Yeah, there's a reason it hit me. I wasn't really paying attention to Quidditch."

"Why not?" he grins, shaking his head, preparing to make some funny comment about her lack of focus when it came to Quidditch.

"Well... Well..." James blinks at her as her face goes a healthy shade of red, and she splutters for a few seconds. "Well, you were really distracting me," she blurts out. "I couldn't really focus on Quidditch..."

James is absolutely powerless over his own body in that moment; a ear-splitting grin spreads over his face, his heart starts to ram against his ribcage so loudly he is sure that she can hear it, and in an uncharacteristic moment for him, he trips over his feet very _un_gracefully, too busy staring at her. He's also not in control of his brain; his eyes travel across her face and drinks it in like he is trying to memorize every last piece. His hand itches to reach out and tuck a strand of her hair behind her ear. He can't stop thinking how _beautiful _she is. He can't stop thinking how amazing they'd be, and he doesn't want to.

Lily presses her lips together, and James is more than thrilled to see she seems to have a similar reaction. "So..." she says slowly. "Do you think maybe we could... talk about that?"

"I think so," he replies, nodding, and as they walk across the grounds, Lily's hand finds James' and their fingers intertwine, and James grins widely, their hands fitting perfectly together.

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Reviews are always welcome!


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